Rick Pitino faceing John Calipari would be March Madness twist

Oh, you knew — you just knew — they were going to figure out a way to make St. John’s pathway in the brackets potentially spicy. Partly, that’s what the committee often has a gift for: Putting two teams with history together, sitting back, and having a nice, deep Dr. Evil laugh about it all.

But part of it is because Rick Pitino has so many options available if the folks on the committee are so inclined. They could’ve lined up the Johnnies opposite the New Mexico Lobos and their coach, Richard Pitino, but that would’ve set up a potential cruel and unusual weekend in Providence for poor Joanne Pitino, wife of one coach and mother of another, who already endured that stress in December and openly (and understandably) rooted for her son.

They could’ve figured a way to either drop Louisville to a No. 10 or push them to a No. 7, and thereby start a week of bile boiling in Louisville. Kentucky was bound for too high a seed to be so easily manipulated, but the committee wouldn’t have minded setting up a similar week of agitation in Lexington, too.

Instead, the perfect pairing fell in their lap.